Opposition to Manatee Downlisting

On March 30, 2017, the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service (FWS) issued its final rule to downgrade the status of the West Indian manatee from endangered to threatened under the federal Endangered Species Act. The rule affects both the Florida and Antillean subspecies and was pursued despite strong scientific and legal evidence that shows the downlisting of manatees is not warranted at this time. The FWS decision leaves manatees and their habitat exposed to attacks and could ultimately preclude the species’ recovery.

Save the Manatee Club believes the FWS decision failed to adequately consider data from 2010 to 2016, during which time manatees suffered from unprecedented mortality events linked to habitat pollution, dependence on artificial warm water sources, and record deaths from watercraft strikes.

FWS decided to prematurely downlist manatees without a proven viable plan for reducing record-high watercraft-related manatee deaths and without establishing a long-term plan for the anticipated loss of artificial winter warm water habitat on which more than 60% of the Florida manatee population depends.

Congressional Delegation Expresses Concern With FWS Proposal to Downlist Manatees
Thank you to the members of the U.S. Congressional Delegation who have expressed concern with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s proposal to downlist manatees. “The Florida manatee continues to face significant threats to its survival such as boating strikes, habitat loss, pollution and the anticipated loss of artificial warm water sources,” the letter states. “The proposal may also fail to reflect the most recent scientific information available.”
Date: April 7, 2016

Buchanan Files Formal Protest to Manatee “Survival” Plan
Thank you to Rep. Vern Buchanan, who has sent a formal objection letter, asking the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to withdraw their plan to downlist manatees. “I write in strong opposition to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s proposal to downlist the West Indian manatee under the Endangered Species Act from endangered to threatened status,” said Rep. Buchanan. “This decision is based on outdated information and underestimates the effect that a downlisting will have on protections that have helped limit manatee deaths.”
Date: April 4, 2016

Florida Organizations and Businesses Write In Opposition to Proposed RuleThank you to these organizations and businesses, who have written in opposition to the FWS proposal to downlist manatees. “One of the five factors the FWS is supposed to evaluate is ‘the present or threatened destruction, modification, or curtailment of its habitat or range,’ the letter states. “Manatees rely on healthy aquatic ecosystems, but in Florida, critical water issues stem from upland land use, runoff, and water consumption for human use. Florida faces serious and increasing threats to the quality and quantity of its water supply, which the State of Florida has been unwilling or unable to resolve. Without serious efforts to address threats to Florida’s waterways, manatee habitat will continue to become increasingly fragmented and degraded.”
Date: April 7, 2016

No Time to Celebrate: Manatees’ Future Far from Certain
Read our op-ed from Dr. Katie Tripp, Save the Manatee Club Director of Science and Conservation,
on the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s recent proposal to downlist all West Indian manatees
from endangered to threatened.
Date: January 12, 2016